


Beginnings

by Night_Air



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Awkward Midorima Shintarou, Cute, Cute Kids, Embarrassed Midorima, F/M, First Meetings, Fluff, Gen, Midorima's sister's name is Tora, One Shot, Short & Sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-03
Updated: 2018-02-03
Packaged: 2019-03-13 04:28:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,716
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13562814
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Night_Air/pseuds/Night_Air
Summary: In which Hikari meets two adorable green-haired siblings and decides to rescue one of them.





	Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> Just a short, sweet fic of a first meeting.

“That will be 345 yen, please.”

Daidara Hikari shoved her hand into her pocket and pulled out a bulging, navy blue wallet. She swiftly singled out a couple bills from the overflowing sea, and stuffed it back into her pants. Handing it over to the cashier, she grabbed her new rabbit toy and moved off to the side, allowing the next customer to step forward.

“I bet Mai will love this,” Hikari murmured to herself, holding up the toy. The long ears hung low on either side of the bunny’s face, and the plump, soft body made the toy very huggable.  The deciding factor, however, was the sweet, wide eyes, gazing at the girl. Hikari beamed happily back, and placed the stuffed animal into her backpack, carefully zipping it up. Swinging the black bag onto her shoulder, Hikari headed towards the exit.

She outstretched a hand to push the door open and it gave way with surprisingly little force. Hikari stumbled forward from the unexpected lack of resistance, and nearly collided with someone.  

“Sorry!” she apologized automatically. Glancing up, she saw a teenage boy, about her age, staring down at her. He was fairly tall, and Hikari estimated at least a ten centimeter gap between them.  His most striking feature, however, was his rich green hair. 

Noticing the deep scowl etched onto his face, Hikari took a couple steps back.  _ Geez, that’s a rather intimidating glare, _ she thought.  

The green-haired boy stared at her for another moment, before turning slightly and calling out something unintelligible. A young girl, with matching emerald hair, skipped over to his side with a bright smile on her face.

“Don’t run off again,” the boy scolded. “It’s annoying enough to be in this place, much less have stop to look for you.”

Hikari watched as the girl stuck her tongue out teasingly. “It’s my birthday.  I can do whatever I want!”

“If you are going to act immaturely I will take you back home.”

The girl’s joyful aura suddenly dissipated--almost as if it had never been there in the first place. Her eyebrows furrowed, shoulders curling in and she looked up with watery eyes. “B-but... _ Nii-san! _ ” she wailed. 

_ The classic kicked puppy look, _ Hikari observed in amusement. She had used her fair share of them when she was a mere toddler.  

The tall, green-haired boy huffed at his younger sister, appearing thoroughly annoyed. He glowered at the ground, reaching up with his right hand, and adjusting the rectangular glasses that sat upon the bridge of his nose. The girl continued to stare at him, a small pout adorning her petite features.  

The boy suddenly snapped his hand out, grabbing the young girl’s in a blur of movement.  Brushing past Hikari with lightning speed, the two siblings entered the toy store before the girl could so much as blink. The door slammed in her face with a bang, causing her to jump slightly.

Standing in shock, Hikari tried to process what had just happened. After a couple of moments, a smile slowly graced her features. She let out a quiet laugh, brushing her long orange bangs back from her face.  

_ That has to be the most adorable thing I have ever seen. _

 

_ * _

 

It was a couple of hours later when the sun began to streak colors across the sky, staining the clouds a cherry blossom pink.

Hikari came to a stop at an empty bench, tossing her bag onto the wooden surface carelessly.  She collapsed next to it, exhaustion finally taking its toll. Her feet ached terribly from running between stores all day, and her shoulders were splotched red and burning from the chaffing of the backpack straps. She had been grabbing small trinkets from almost every store she set her eye on.  

“Mom was right,” the orange-haired girl moaned. “I really do go crazy with shopping.” She let out a heavy sigh, and dug into her pocket to pull out her phone. She quickly wrote a short text to her mom to tell her she was coming home soon. 

Hikari  yawned, covering her open mouth with one hand. Sliding the phone back into her pocket, she lifted her legs and placed them on the empty bench space beside her.

_ I’ll just rest here for a while, _ Hikari thought.  _ Regain some energy, and then I’ll go home. _

Closing her eyes, the girl allowed her muscles to loosen from their tight, stressed condition. Her head relaxed onto her backpack, which molded under the new weight. The silence of the streets began to calm her, and Hikari could feel her breaths lengthen and slow.

Too soon she found herself to sinking into the comfort of oblivion.

 

*

 

“Ah...excuse me miss?”

Hikari slowly found herself groggily open her eyes. A blurry image presented itself and she quickly reached up to rub at her eyes. Blinking them open once more, Hikari found herself staring into the clear, forest green eyes of a small child.  

Jerking back, the orange-haired girl quickly sat up.  _ What happened? _ she wondered, brain still foggy from sleep.  

_ Sleep! _

Hikari was surely awake now. She hadn’t meant to fall asleep! She looked around her, immediately noticing that the sky had turned pitch black. Extracting her phone in a panic, Hikari quickly checked the time.  _ No, that’s impossible!  I couldn’t have slept for two hours straight! _

Truly horrified by the numbers that stared back at her, the girl shot to her feet. Her mother would be furious at her!  How could she be so  _ stupid?! _

A small yelp drew her attention to the small figure that peered up at her. Her sudden movement must have startled the child.  

Hikari briefly wondered who she was, but her urgent need to get home rose above that. 

“Ah, I have to go!” she said. “I’m sorry, I really can’t talk.” She hurriedly turned on her heel, snatching her bag and swinging it onto a shoulder. She was already calculating how many minutes it would take for her to walk back to her house. Twenty, perhaps?  Surely it couldn’t take more than thirty.

A small tug on the bottom of her shirt halted Hikari in her steps. “But miss...I think I’m lost,” a soft voice murmured unsurely.  

_ You’ve got to be kidding me. _

Letting out a heavy sigh, Hikari turned back around. She didn’t have the time to deal with a child. She needed to get home.

However, as she stared into the clearly frightened gaze of a vulnerable child, she could feel her resolve breaking. The poor kid was truly lost, and Hikari didn’t have the heart to leave her.

Home could wait. Her mother would understand.  

Hikari knelt down, leveling her height to be even with the girl’s. She took the small, trembling hands and enclosed them in her own. This close, Hikari could see the child’s bright, watering eyes, and she wondered how she could have ever turned away in the first place.

The girl shifted slightly, and the light from the streetlamp glinted off her eyes. The green flash left Hikari blinking in slight confusion.  _ Why do I feel like I know her? _

The child sniffed miserably, and Hikari shook herself out of her thoughts. It didn’t matter now.

“Hey,” she greeted gently. “I’m going to help you find your parents, okay? My name is Daidara Hikari.”

The small girl slipped a hand out of Hikari’s light hold to wipe at her eyes. “I-I’m Midorima Tora,” she replied in a soft, yet sweet, voice.

Hikari smiled reassuringly. “It’s nice to meet you, Tora-chan,” she said, still speaking in a soft tone. “I’m going to ask you a couple of questions, just so I can understand your situation better, okay?”

Tora blinked slowly. “Okay.” 

“Did someone come with you to the fair?”

A nod.

“Who was it?”

“Nii-san.”

_ Her brother, but not her parents, _ Hikari noted. “Where did you last see him?”

“He went to use the bathroom. H-he told me to wait there...and there was a man, holding cotton candy! I was hungry, but I waited for Nii-san. And...then there was a lot of people! They all pushed me and I fell! And then Nii-san disappeared.”

“Oh, sweetie. Did you get hurt?”

Tora shook her head. “No.”

Hikari gave the younger girl a smile, and squeezed her hand lightly. “You’re a very brave girl, you know.” Tora looked down at the cracked sidewalk, and shuffled her feet. Despite her lowered head, Hikari was still able to catch the slightly flushed cheeks.  

“It’s true,” she insisted. Tora let out a soft giggle. It was small, and more of a sharp exhale than a laugh, but it sounded like music to Hikari’s ears.

_ Now that she’s more comfortable it’ll be easier to get her to respond. _ Hikari took out her phone and swiped a couple of times to get the number pad to pop up. She handed it to Tora, who took it gingerly, as if she was afraid she would drop it.

“Do you know your parents or your brother’s number?”

Tora blinked silently at the screen for a moment before slowly nodding. With a steady hand, the young girl slowly typed in a number. Hikari carefully took the device back, and pressed ‘call’. The phone buzzed three times before the other end picked up.

“Midorima-san?”

“Hai.  Who is calling?” a gruff, male voice answered.  

“My name is Daidara Hikari. I, ah, found your daughter, Tora-chan.” The instant the child’s name fell from Hikari’s lips, there was a muted gasp that echoed through the line. A long beat of silence followed. Suddenly there was a sharp screech of static and Hikari started, pulling the phone a couple centimeters away from her ringing eardrum.   

She patiently waited until the noise receded significantly before placing it carefully next to her ear.  

“How is she?” a new voice asked. It was feminine this time — higher in pitch, but considerably sharper in tone. “Can I talk to her?”

Hikari handed the phone to Tora and mouthed ‘mom’. The girl took it with wide eyes, and raised it to her ear. She paused for a moment, listening intently, and then nodded very vigorously.

“I know Daidara-san because she was at the toy store that Nii-san brought me to. She’s very nice!”

_ Oh, of course _ , Hikari realized. Tora was the little sister of the tall green haired teen that Hikari had bumped into earlier. She should have remembered — the two had stood out, after all. Such a vibrant hair color wasn’t very common in Japan.

After another short exchange between Tora and her mother, the young girl shyly handed the phone back to Hikari.

There was a sharp exhale — which could have either been in relief or frustration, Hikari couldn’t tell — and then the elder Midorima asked her for her location. Hikari quickly relayed the directions. There was a pause, as the woman said something to a person on the other end, most likely her husband, before addressing Hikari again. “Alright, Shintarō will be there in fifteen minutes. Thank you very much for this.”

Hikari bit her lip, a sharp spike of guilt striking through her as she thought of that one moment where she had considered leaving Tora on her own. “Ah, of course. It’s not a problem, Midorima-san. I’m just glad I could help.”

Tora said a quick goodbye to both her parents before Hikari ended the call. Now all they had to do was wait.

 

*

 

Apparently, Midorima Shintarō was a very punctual person because it was exactly fifteen minutes later when Hikari spotted him, green hair stark against his dark clothing. He was striding towards them briskly.

She stood up and waved, even though he could clearly already see them. Tora jumped off of the bench and excitedly ran towards her brother. 

“Nii-san!” she called, her long hair flowing in waves behind her.

Hikari followed her at a much slower pace. She watched as the elder Midorima crouched down to Tora’s height and proceeded to scold her for running off. Tora looked at the ground and shuffled her feet as he told her that their parents nearly had a heart attack when he told them that Tora had disappeared. 

The young girl sniffled, and rubbed at her watery eyes. “I’m sorry, Nii-san. I didn’t want to worry anyone.”

Midorima stared down at his sister for a long moment, brows furrowed. Then he heaved a large sigh and twisted slightly to pull out a pack of tissues from his pocket. He handed them to Tora, watching her take one out and blow her nose.

Hikari watched them with a smile. She was an only child, so she had never experienced the connection that siblings had with one another. Hikari had never really wanted to share her household with another child, but watching the two Midorimas, she could understand why some people really longed for that kind of relationship.

Midorima’s gaze suddenly snapped to Hikari, as if he had just now remembered that she was there. She nearly jumped, startled out of her thoughts.

Hikari watched as he laid a hand on Tora’s head softly and then stood up, focusing on her intently. She had briefly noted the intimidating strength of his glare when she had bumped into him earlier, but now that she was really focusing, he seemed even more menacing.

Midorima stepped closer to her, and Hikari nearly had to crane her neck up to look at him. How could he be so tall? The other teen didn’t seem to be much older than Hikari herself.  _ But perhaps he’s already in college and just looks really young? _

Hikari was just about to open her mouth to say something to break the awkward silence when Midorima lowered his upper body into a deeply respectful ninety degree bow.

“Thank you for watching over my sister,” he stated stiffly. Hikari was completely taken aback by the formality.

“Really, it was no problem,” Hikari assured, “please, you don’t have to bow.” She could feel her face slowly heating up in embarrassment.

Midorima slowly straightened, his sharp green eyes meeting hers for a brief moment before flickering away and focusing on something behind her. His cheeks seemed to be slightly pinker, but it was so faint that Hikari couldn’t be sure.

Behind him, Tora yawned and rubbed her eyes. Hikari was suddenly reminded of how late it was.

“Midorima-san, I should probably get going…” Hikari said, worriedly checking her phone. She had called her mother while she and Tora were waiting, but she didn’t want to cause even more worry by arriving home even later.

He nodded and opened his mouth to reply when a sudden force ran into Hikari’s legs and nearly knocked her off her feet. She staggered backwards, and looked down at Tora clinging to her legs.

“Thank you so much, Daidara-san,” the little girl mumbled.

Hikari smiled at the sight of the small girl wrapped around her leg. “You’re very welcome. I’m so glad I met you, Tora-chan. I hope--”

“Can we see each other again?” Tora interjected, hope shining bright in her wide eyes.

Hikari laughed, surprised by Tora’s eagerness. “I would love to. Do you want me to give you my phone number so we can get in contact again?” She glanced at the elder Midorima. “If that’s alright….?”

He gave a short nod and Hikari rapidly scribbled down the digits on a tissue and held it out to Tora. Tora unwound herself from Hikari’s legs and carefully took the note, stashing it in a pant pocket.

As soon as Tora’s hands were free, Midorima reached over and grasped his sister’s hand. He tugged on her arm gently and started heading back the way he came.

Tora stumbled a little, her shorter statue making it twice as hard for her to keep up with his pace. “I’ll see you soon!” she yelled, waving her free hand frantically over one shoulder.

“Bye!” Hikari replied, grinning and raising her own hand to wave back. She watched the backs of the two emerald-haired siblings for a couple of moments as they walked away together. 

_ They really are cute,  _ she thought as she adjusted her backpack on her shoulders and turned, heading down the opposite street to her own home.  _ I wonder if I’ll see them again. _


End file.
